Geoffrey

CNN has been using that style of bug for online videos for years. Definitely doesn't match the TV look and perhaps it was simply a careless editing mistake.

I've had trouble logging in here over the last week but just figured out a way... I was in shock when Dana signed off from the station. Others have already said it better but it felt so abrupt. I've been a fan of Dana's for nearly 28 of her 34 years at WCBS-TV and even had the honor of working with her for a few years. Yes, she is a perfectionist but she makes everyone better and most people really appreciated that. That's exactly the kind of person you'd want as a captain of a news organization. Dana deserved better, as did the viewers. Wild speculation time: Might she somehow end up with WPIX? Their ND is a WCBS veteran and goes way back with Dana. I believe they have a lot of respect for each other. Not sure they'd have the budget but I could see *something* being worked out somehow. Even if it's just weekly Broadway reports and maybe serving as a fill-in. I don't know. The new 6:00 is interesting. Looks like Maurice and Kristine will take turns anchoring it. Tonight was Kristine's turn. Nice use of different areas of the studio. Colors look nice, though weird to go with dark colors and a sunset photo when the sun is now setting well after 7pm. Couldn't tell if they had more sit-downs with reporters, or if they would have done those anyway but at the desk. Maybe a bit of both. Also, there was no sports. I can't help but think Dana would have pulled off this modified format brilliantly, but I guess Paramount really needed those budget cuts. Quite a shame.

50 years is quite an accomplishment! Newsday also had something on Chuck today, but it's paywalled unfortunately: https://www.newsday.com/entertainment/tv/chuck-scarborough-wnbc-k6wsvksw

This bug appeared at 5:30 for about a minute this evening, before being taken away and replaced by the normal blue one. Pretty weird. The ugly gradient reminds me of CBSN's old "Red & Blue" look (and also 1990s web design).

Jake was in Philadelphia that day covering the release of a man who spent 12 years in jail for a crime he did not commit. He says so here and explains his personal connection to CJ Rice: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPznXzia6-I

Taking Dana Tyler off of the anchor desk. Not a fan of this at all.

It has a lot to do with lead-ins. WCBS had Judge Judy at 4 and the 5:00 was doing well. Then they lost Judge Judy and immediately fell. They picked up the show again and shot back up to #2. WABC had Oprah at 4 and those viewers made them #1 at 5. The winning allowed the station to remain stable in terms of talent and presentation. When Oprah ended her show and WABC replaced it with a newscast, viewers were already so accustomed to Eyewitness News that they largely stayed with them. Syndicated and network lead-ins are huge, along with stability (which is often a chicken-or-the-egg-type thing with winning).

They put Kasie in a studio! Same music and graphics, but it sounded like they used a slightly different cut for the open. The second hour at 6 a.m. kicked off with an in-studio discussion with Senator Joe Manchin. In the previous format, it might have been a panel discussion. Not sure Manchin is going to win any viewers over. In the few minutes I checked out, it really feels like a downgrade in the 6 a.m. hour. I'm a Kasie Hunt fan but a solo anchor in the morning is such a different vibe.

Definitely a surprise to hear Andrea clearly indicate that it was not her choice, especially since she seems to be weighing their offer to report during the week. She recently expressed gratitude on social media for being able to only work on weekends so that she could spend time with her young children, so I'd be interested to see if she winds up staying, and if they work out an option where she only works a couple days a week. I wonder if this change had less to do with her performance (she got along very well with Doug and Craig) and more the station's desire to use weekends to better develop a bench for weekday filling in and grooming potential weekday anchors. It sort of sounds like they will be hiring from outside for the job. In recent months, Dave Carlin and Tim McNicholas have been used as fill ins on weekend mornings, but it doesn't seem like they'll be going in this direction.

CNN's morning changes start next week. Kasie Hunt noted the end of the "Early Start" brand after 12 years as show will take on the "CNN This Morning with Kasie Hunt" as it expands to a second hour. I wonder if she will continue anchoring from the flash cam position, or if they will invest in a crew to have her do the two hours from an actual studio in DC. (Since CNN seems to be making cuts in the morning, I guess I shouldn't hold my breath.) Also wondering if the open and theme will be kept. Poppy Harlow and Phil Mattingly thanked the staff, including the studio and control room crews, for their hard work making them look good. I believe all of these positions are being eliminated as this version of the New York-based broadcast has essentially been cut. Hoping to see Phil and Poppy stay prominent faces on the network and that CNN treats the other employees well. Kate Bolduan, John Berman and Sara Sidner announced their new 7-10 a.m. hours. John joked "You might say that we are reimagining the CNN News Central schedule, but we're sure you know that because you've seen all the promos," adding "This is called a soft launch because we don't want to set expectations too high, but we are allowed to say we'll be a revolution in morning television. CNN News Central, more news, less waiting, fewer chairs." Sara thanked Poppy, Phil and the NY and Atlanta teams. Edit: I just noticed some changes in the 4 a.m. hour as well. It used to be "CNN Newsroom with Max Foster and Bianca Nobilo," and they made a point of announcing this team for the U.S. viewers beginning November 1, 2022 (when the Don Lemon version of CNN This Morning launched). But this past Monday it was just "CNN Newsroom with Max Foster." And then since Tuesday morning, it's been an AC360 repeat. CNN's website shows CNN Newsroom listed for next week, so I'm not sure what's going on.

Univision seems to be taking an international NFL Network feed for video and providing Spanish-language play-by-play. Unfortunate that the graphics are in English. Here's Nickelodeon: I've seen NFL Network provide radio audio with graphics for past Super Bowls but this is the first time I've seen live mapping of the players on the field:

The scorebug posted above did not pan out.

The NFL Today has begun.

Just came across this on WBBM's YouTube page... I'm guessing these are just thumbnails created for their live streams as they do not appear to be screenshots, but it's interesting that they're using a different version of the lower-third. This one more closely resembles what was seen in that demo reel before these graphics launched. The text is much smaller than you'd expect for a typical YouTube thiumbnail. Although maybe the channel banner is proof that the person making graphics for their YouTube page is just throwing things together and not really clear on the correct graphics to use.

Poppy took a few years off of the 9-11am Newsroom to get a degree from Yale Law, which she completed shortly before CNN This Morning started. She was thankful to Jeff Zucker for letting her do that, and she occasionally filled in on weekends and holidays while she wasn't in class.